~ a journal

Back to dark runs

I lost my voice, got it again, battled a nasty cold and cough before I finally got back on the road. The forced break wasn’t doing much for my spirits and I decided last night that I was getting out today. It was tiring but felt good to kiss the earth with my feet. This barefoot thing is like plugging into an energy source. Inevitably, it recharges my entire being and lights up my day.

The mornings are dark and get darker the moment the street lamps get turned off. It is darkest before dawn… because the lights go out then. 😊 Silly thoughts to entertain myself today since it was just a getting back run. Jokes apart, it is a bit startling when I almost run into a cycle or a jawan because I can’t see. Maybe, it’s just been too long since I ran in the dark. Anyways, in a month or so, daylight will be earlier and summer not far behind.

It’s easy for me to get all enthusiastic about runs after a break but keeping it real means sticking to a routine. One of the things I’ve been considering is signing up for a few events this year. In fact, I signed up for one in a couple of months, in my city. Out of my comfort zone. Another one I have in mind happens to coincide with the family vacation plan. Looks like our holidays happen around runs. The last two were in such pretty places!

Yoga is challenging again with handstand preps and learning. It’s fun and frustrating to kick up and not quite kick up. I love the rigour of Iyengar yoga which makes practice invigorating. Poses are not about the final presentation but working with restraint and control to bring strength and beauty in the pose. The benefits to the body are but a fraction of what it offers. As a system, it is similar to endurance sports. It takes time, a very long time, for proficiency and there are no shortcuts. Definitely not for the impatient.